Rona & Ferguson try betting in NRL Round 11 Bulldogs vs. Roosters

THE Bulldogs and the Roosters meet on Sunday afternoon at ANZ Stadium in a match that is simply a must-win if the Bondi boys are to make a late charge for the NRL Finals.

After their shock Monday night loss to the Gold Coast Titans, the Roosters will need to win 10 of their last 14 matches; which includes clashes against the current top-three, the Broncos, Sharks and Storm.

Canterbury have proven at different stages this season that they can beat anyone on their day, but finding consistency is the key.

The Dogs boast wins over Melbourne, Penrith and Parramatta, but they have let themselves down badly after dropping points to the Warriors and the Raiders.

Beating the Roosters on Sunday would hand Canterbury their first back-to-back set of victories since round two.

Enough about the boring team stuff though, we are looking at the individual markets on Sunday – specifically the try scorer markets.

We have two Kiwi Bulldogs that we think are ridiculously over the odds for the big clash, and a few Roosters who need to stand up and be counted are among our other selections.

All odds this week are provided by Sportsbet.com.au.

Try-scoring markets

Canterbury Bulldogs

We are spoiled for choice when it comes to Bulldog try scorers in this match up, but we have elected to go with two Kiwis that are very hard to ignore at their prices.

Both of these guys are ranked inside the top 20 in the league for tries scored in 2016, and we are backing them to add some more to their already imposing list on Sunday.

Curtis Rona

We are backing a New Zealand Bulldog to score the opening try on Sunday afternoon.

The young Kiwi has crossed the line four times in the past five weeks and sits at 15th for tries scored in 2016 for the entire league.

In the Bulldogs’ last three matches Rona has scored the first try for his team, and twice those tries were the first one of the game.

The 23-year-old has scored in a try in five of the ten matches this season, and at $7.50 he represents sensational value to score the first major of Sunday’s twilight fixture.

First try scorer: Curtis Rona – $7.50

First try scorer – home team: Curtis Rona – $4.00

Sam Perrett

We are looking at another Bulldog that was born across the Tasman in the anytime try scorer market, and given this guy’s record we are astounded he is at this price.

The versatile Perrett has been a scoring threat in every game this season, crossing the line seven times in 2016 to sit at 13 in the NRL for tries scored.

A try on Sunday would ensure the 31-year-old keeps his sensational consecutive streak of tries scored to six, and at $3.00 we are making this our best bet of the match.

Anytime try scorer: Sam Perrett – $3.00

Sydney Roosters

In contrast to the Dogs, picking try scorers for the Roosters is a tough gig.

The Chooks have the third worst points for record in the league and twice this season they have failed to score a try for the entirety of the match.

Sportsbet.com.au have the Roosters at $26.00 to have no try scorer for the match.

The Roosters still have some terrific attacking threats that can cause havoc on their day, and we have selected to of those men to make an impact on Sunday afternoon.

Blake Ferguson

Former Raider and phenomenal athlete Blake Ferguson is the man that we think has the best shot at scoring the first try for the Roosters.

The Australian and New South Wales representative has been a shining light in dark season for the Roosters thus far, scoring six tries in 2016.

Ferguson has scored three tries in the last two matches, so he also brings in terrific form.

The double figure odds for Blake Ferguson to score the first try are hard to ignore, and he even represents great value just to cross the line first for the Roosters on Sunday.

First try scorer: Blake Ferguson – $15.00

First try scorer – away team: Blake Ferguson – $7.50

Joe Burgess

He may be from England, but the 21-year-old former Wigan star is no relation to the South Sydney Burgess boys, which bodes well given their lack of scoring ability.

The England international has not had the impact the Roosters would have envisioned so far this season, but he looks ready to start scoring again after forcing his way back into the line-up.

Burgess scored two tries on debut against South Sydney in round one; his ability to cross the line cannot be doubted, we just need to see more of it.

His side need him more than ever and we are backing him to cross the line for the first time since round one.